Cameron Hughes buys well-known wineries’ excess juice (there’s been a lot of that lately), excess wine (not yet bottled), and excess shiners (wine in bottles without labels). The prices Cam charges are, for the most part, 100% laughable. By removing the marketing stuff, he’s able to offer great wine for a fraction of what they sell for behind nicer labels than Cam cares to invest in. Lot 724 is hardly an exception. Pour a glass for yourself and your first sip says, with authority: “This is an excellent Oregon Pinot Noir that should be selling at $30-$40+ a bottle.” Your second sip says the same. So, too, do the third and beyond. According to Cam, whose reviews I trust (especially after I taste the wine, too): "If tasted blind, you'd think this was Oregon right out of the bottle – it pours an almost-transparent scarlet color in the glass, but this Mendocino Pinot hits all the local terroir marks with a nose bursting of cranberry, rose hips, hibiscus, and cocoa bean. On entry the juice is oddly buoyant and refined at the same time, riding a medium acidity with soft, silky tannins accentuated by notes of mushroom, potpourri, cinnamon, and clove. The finish is incredibly clean, dry, stitched up, and commanding of another sip.” He sells the wine for $15 a bottle, BUT, when you buy a case (as with friends, if need be), the shipping is free. Plus that, when Cam offers a new wine – which is frequent – buy one bottle and you can add 11 others (the same or different) at a 15% discount. Plus that, he often has 20% off sales. In other words, this is a GREAT wine you should be able to get at a price of somewhere near $12+, including shipping.
